Oil-burning heater



Feb. 28, 1950 Filed Dec. 4, 1944 o. c. GRIEWANK 2,499,308

OIL BURNING HEATER 2 Sheets-Sheet l M F/QZ W H1 l H O p l l l lllll 55 0l l ill a I In ATTORNEYS.

Feb. 28, 1950 o. c. GRIEWANK 2,499,311

OIL BURNING HEATER Filed Dec. 4, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 O 770 C. 62/5 WA/Y/ IN VEN TOR.

c m MW ATTOENE Y5.

Patented Feb. 28, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE OIL-BURNING HEATEROtto C. Griewank, La Porte, Ind. Application December 4, 1944, SerialNo. 566,516 7 Claims. (Cl. 126-93) This invention relates toimprovements in oil burning heaters.

The primary object of this invention is to provide a simple, economical,trouble-free and inexpensive device of this character.

A further object is to provide a device of this character which operatesat a very high degree of efficiency.

A further object is to provide a device of this character wherein theformation of carbon residue from the burning of oil is much lower thanin conventional oil burning heaters.

A further object is to provide a device of this character which isconstructed to produce turbulence in the combustion zone for the purposeof improving the efficienoy of combustion.

A further object is to provide a device of this character with a fueldistributor and vaporizer at its fuel intake which is constructed andarranged relative to the fuel inlet to insure against clogging of theinlet by the carbon residue of combustion.

A further object is to provide a device which distributes heat bothupwardly by convection and laterally outwardly for a substantialdistance at a low level by radiation.

Other objects will be apparent from the description.

Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional View of the device.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary detail sectional view.

Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a transverse sectional View taken on line 4-4 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a transverse sectional view taken on line 5-5 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is a perspective detail view of the distributor ring.

Referring to the drawing, which illustrates one embodiment of theinvention, the numeral Ill designates a cylindrical housing member openat its lower end and having an access opening ll adjacent its lower endadapted to be closed by a door H which is hingedly or otherwise suitablymounted. A bottom panel l3 spans the bottom open end of cylindricalhousing l and has an upturned marginal flange 14 which fits aroundhousing It! and is circumferentially stepped at l to support the bottomedge of said housing. Panel l3 has a central opening defined by anupturned collar or sleeve 16. A pair of concentric downwardly ofi-setdished portions are formed in panel l3, the larger dished portion I1preferably being of a. diameter slightly greater than one-half of thediameter of the housing l0 and being circumferentially stepped at l8 atits margin, and the inner dished portion i9 being of a diameterapproximately one-third of the diameter of housing ill.

The housing is supported upon a base comprising a base panel 20, amarginal upturned flange 2! of approximately the same diameter ashousing Iii which engages the bottom panel l3 at stepped portion l5, anda plurality of supporting legs 22. Base panel 20 has a central openingtherein defined by an upturned sleeve 23 having a snug fit at its upperend within the sleeve [6 of panel 13.

An elongated tube 24 fits snugly at its lower end around the sleeve 16of base panel I3, whereby it extends vertically in communication withthe opening in the bottom of the device. Tube 24 is provided with aplurality of small uniformly spaced apertures 25 throughoutsubstantially its full extent. A head is mounted on the upper end oftube 24 and comprises an apertured cupshaped concentric part 26 and animperforate cover plate 21. Part 26 has a plurality of circumferentialseries of uniformly spaced small apertures 28 therein adjacent its outerperiphery. For best results, the apertures 28 are formed at and adjacentthat portion of part 26 at which the substantially cylindrical marginalflange 29 thereof merges with the laterally extending portion, so thatsaid apertures face downwardly and outwardly from said head. The head isof a diameter substantially one-half that of housing In.

A cylindrical sleeve member 30 encircles the lower end of tube 24,having a diameter to fit snugly at the stepped portion l8 of bottompanel l3. Member 30 is of a length slightly less than one-half of thelength of tube 24. An annular plate 3l'fits on the upper end of member30 and cooperates therewith to define an inverted cup-' shaped member,the opening 32 in said plate being of a diameter slightly greater thantube 24 to provide a restricted annular opening between said tube andplate.

An annular distributor ring 33 fits in the central off-set 19 of bottompanel l3. As here illustrated, the ring is of curved shape in crosssection. It fits around tube 24 with only a slight annular clearance 33'in the order of one-eighth of an inch. An oil feed line 34, providedwith a suitable control valve (not shown), extends substantiallyhorizontally intothe off-set l9 and ter minates therein spaced from tube24. Ring 33 is cut away at 35 to fit around said oil line. Also, thelower outer margin is preferably provided with a plurality of spacedslots or notches 36 to permit passage of fuel oil therethrough.

An annular smoke passage defined by an annular base 31, an innercylindrical wall 38, the housing It) and the housing cover 39, isprovided. at the upper end of housing If]. The base 3'! has an opening40 therein for entry of the products of combustion into said passage,and a vertical radial partition 4| is provided alongside of saidopening. The housing has an'opening defined by flange 42 adjacent toopening 40 but separated therefrom by partition 4|. A smoke pipe 43 fitsaround flange 42 and communicates with the interior of the annular smokepassage.

It will be observed that three concentric spaces or zones, each having arestricted outlet, are -provided in the device. One of these isdeflnedby distributor ring 33 and serves as a starting and vaporizing zone. Thesecond is defined by "the sleeve 36 and annular plate lowfire zone. Thethirdor high fire zone is defined by housing If) and head 26, 21.

To start the burner, oil is fed ata low rate through-line 34 into thecup-shaped depression Hi. The oil is permitted to flow through thedistributorring slots36 into the portion of depression- -|9exteriorly'of the distributor ring. Consequently, combustion canbe'initiated by dropping a burning match or brand through the opening 32of plate 3|. it heats the distributor ring until the latter reachesatemperature adequate to vaporize the oil within the ring. This vapor isuniformly discharged through the central opening in the distributor ringaround the tube' 24 into the intermediate combustionzone. It isimportant to note that initial combustion, which is relativelyinefiicient and characterized by carbon formation, occurs exteriorly ofthe distributor ring 33. Consequently, the carbon resulting fromincomplete and-inefficient combustion is deposited exteriorly of ring 33and cannot clog the oil line 34 which terminates within said ring.

. Air' entering the'device through the opening I6 in-panel I3 and 23 inbase 2|] and the tube 24 is discharged from tube 24 through apertures 25and supports combustion of the vaporized fuel. At a low'rate of fuelsupply, combustion will occur at and-immediately above the distributorring. Combustion -'is characterized 'by outwardly directed tongues offlame at each of the apertures 25=within the zone of combustion, thatis, at all radii of the'device within a limited verticaldi mention-orsection of tube '24. As the rate of fuel supply isincreasedstep-by-step, the amount of fuel vapor increases proportionally, and thesize of-the flame likewise increases proportionally. Also, thecombustion occurs at a higher elevation in the=device. When the upperrange of the rate of fuel supply is approached, the restriction oftheoutlet opening 32 of the intermediate combustion zone automaticallycauses combustion to occur'in the-upper zone, 1. e., above plate 3|Combustion will then occur both at the apertures 25 of tube :24 and atthe apertures '28 of heads 26, 27. However, since the discharge of airfrom apertures 28 is downwardly and outwardly, a turbulence results.This produces a high efficiency of combustion, characterized by a verylow rate of formation of soot and carbon residue, because the fuelvapors are-subjected to two sources of air and this factor, coupled withthe turbulence which effectively mixes the vapors and air, producessubstantially complete combustion. Stated differently, allv products ofcombustion 3| and serves as a 'As the oilburns in depression I!) -whencombustion occurs within must pass around the head 26, 2'! for dischargeto the smoke passage, and hence are subjected di-.

"erties and efliciency. This radiant heating effect is enhanced at itslow rate of combustion by the intermediate combustion zone. In otherwords, sleeve 30 at a low rate of fuel feed as described above, therestriction at 32 to the products of combustion serves to heat thesleeve 30 and itscover 3| and thereby facilitate radiant distribution ofheat.

-Temperature readings taken at different levels of housing |0 atdifferent rates of fuel supply, disclose that, at-low rates of fuelsupply, the lower portionof the housing is hotter than the upperportion. As the rate of fuel supply increases, the temperatures atdifferent levels increase and tendto equalize. At the highest rate offuel supply, the upper portion of the housing ID becomes slightly hotterthanthe lowest portion thereof. As aresult of this and possibly otherfactors, heat is distributed by the'device ina wide area around thedevice. Of greater'importance, however, is the fact that theheat-isdistributed at a low level. Thus, when the device-is'operating atand above its intermediate rate of fuel supply, a person standing as faras twelve or fifteen feet from the device experiences a heating efiectatankle level andabove. -To the best of myinformation, such results of'low level-heat distribution have never been achieved with space heatersheretofore.

When-the parts areproperly:proportioned, substantially as illustratedand described, the device will operate efiiciently'on natural draft at'alow fuelfeedor low-fire setting. Also, the fuel burns witha yellow-flamewhich is characteristic of maximum combustion efliciency.

The ratiosof theareas'of the discharge passages 33'36, 32, and betweenhead 2'! and housing; m to-the volumes oftheir respective combustionandvaporizingzones, i.e., within ring 33, within chamber 30, 3|, andbeneath head 21, respectively, should-be approximately equal for bestresults in achieving good combustion and radiant heat distribution.

I claim:

1. An oil burning heatencomprisinga vertical housing having top, sideand bottom walls, with a central air'intake-opening through its bottomwall and a smoke outlet, a vertical: apertured tube in vsaid ehousingcommunicating with said intake opening and closed at its top, acentrally apertured inverted cup-shaped-distributor ring resting on thebottom of the housing encircling thebottom portion of said tube todefine-an annular vaporizing space having a restricted annular outletbetween 'said ring and said tube,

the lower marginal portion of said distributor ring being notched, andmeans for discharging oil into said vaporizingspace.

2; An-oil burning heatercomprising a vertical housing, including a basehaving a central air intake-opening and a concentric dishedportionaround said-opening, a vertical apertured tube in; said housingvcommunicating with said intake opening and-closed at its stop, anannularxin verted dished distributing member fitting in said dishedportion to define an annular vaporizing space having a restrictedannular outlet between said ring and tube, and means for discharging oilinto said vaporizing space said distributing member being of radiallycurved shape with its inner periphery of slightly larger diameter thansaid tube and its outer periphery notched to accommodate fiow of oiloutwardly thereof into said dished portion.

3. An oil burning heater comprising a vertical housing having a bottomprovided with a central opening and a concentric annular dished portionaround said opening, a vertical tube in said housing communicating withsaid opening and having a multiplicity of apertures therein throughoutsubstantially its full extent, an enlarged hollow head mounted on andcommunieating with the upper end of said tube and positioned within andcooperating with said housing to define a restricted annular dischargepassage for a combustion space within said housing and around said tube,a dome-like distributor ring fitting in said dished portion to define avaporizing space having a restricted discharge passage around and partlydefined by said tube and a discharge opening in its lower marginalportion, said head having downwardly and outwardly facing aperturesuniformly spaced around its lower outer portion.

4. An oil burning heater comprising a vertical housing having a basewith a central opening and a concentric annular dished portion aroundsaid opening, a vertical apertured tube in said housing communicatingwith said opening, an enlarged head within said housing mounted on andclosing the top of said tube and cooperating with said housing to definea restricted annular discharge passage for a combustion zone in saidhousing around said tube and below the level of said head, a sleevemember mounted on said base coaxial with said tube to define a secondand smaller combustion zone around the lower end portion of said tube,said sleeve member having a clearance with said tube providing arestricted outlet, means for supplying oil to said dished portion, and aring cooperating with said dished portion and said tube to form avaporizing chamber within and at the bottom of said second combustionzone having a restricted annular discharge passage between said tube andsaid ring.

5. An oil burning space heater comprising a vertical housing having abase with a central opening and a concentric annular dished portionaround said opening, a vertical apertured tube in said housingcommunicating with said opening, an enlarged head within said housingmounted on and closing the top of said tube and cooperating with saidhousing to define a restricted annular discharge passage for the spacein said housing below the level of said head and around said tube whichconstitutes a combustion zone, a sleeve member mounted on said basecoaxial with said tube to define a second and smaller combustion zonearound the lower end of said tube, said sleeve member having a clearancewith said tube providing a restricted outlet, means for supplying oil tosaid dished portion, a distributor ring fitting in said dished portionand within said sleeve member, said head having openings for uniformlydischarging air around said head in a downward outward direction.

6. An oil burning space heater comprising a vertical housing having acentral air intake opening at its bottom, a vertical apertured tube insaid housing communicating with said opening and having an enlarged headpositioned within and cooperating with said housing to define acombustion zone around said tube and a restricted annular outlet fromsaid zone, means within said zone defining a second smaller combustionzone around the lower end portion of said tube having a restrictedannular discharge passage around said tube, means for feeding oil ontothe bottom of said housing adjacent said tube, and an inverted disheddistributor ring mounted on the bottom of the housing in said secondzone in which said oil is vaporized, said ring distributing the vaporuniformly around said tube and discharging the vapor through an annualrpassage between the tube and the ring.

7. An oil burning space heater comprising a vertical housing having acentral air intake opening at its bottom, a vertical apertured tube insaid housing communicating with said opening and having an enlarged headpositioned within and cooperating with said housing to define acombustion zone around said tube and a restricted annular outlet fromsaid zone, said head having an annular series of openings in its lowerouter portion, means within said zone and below said head defining asecond smaller combustion zone around the lower end portion of said tubehaving a restricted annular discharge passage around and partly definedby said tube, a dome-like distributing ring bearing on the bottom of thehousing within said second zone and encircling said tube with a smallclearance to define a vaporizing chamber around the base of said tubeand a restricted annular discharge passage between said ring and saidtube, and means for feeding oil into said distributor ring adjacent saidtube.

OTTO C. GRIEWANK.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 167,684 Nystrom Sept. 14, 1875473,858 Stacey Apr. 26, 1892 1,452,563 Lewis Apr. 24, 1923 1,597,027Egloff Aug. 24, 1926 1,806,566 Sturgis May 19, 1931 1,840 137 SturgisJan. 5, 1932 2,020,777 Gore Nov. 12, 1935 2,039,591 Gilmore et al. May5, 1936 2,065,265 Bock Dec. 22, 1936 2,091,658 Sturgis Aug. 31, 19372,128,155 McPherson Aug. 23, 1938 2,136.317 Rialdini Nov. 8, 19382,184,653 Sherrick et a1 Dec. 26, 1939 2,257,834 Beehee Oct. 7, 19412,262,922 Castle et a1 Nov, 18, 1941 2,290,544 DeLancey July 21, 19422,326,221 Hill Aug. 10, 1943 2,357,587 Hammell Sept. 5, 1944 FOREIGNPATENTS Number Country Date 828,121 France Feb. 7, 1988

